Heoya food truck celebrates 10 years of serving Korean fries, burritos and other Asian fusion dishes

LINCOLN, Neb. (KOLN) - For a decade, Heoya has been serving up rice bowls, tacos and Korean fries. An Asian fusion food truck that started with an idea in 2011.

Minh Nguyen said his family was looking for ideas to start a business when Heoya (pronounced Hell Yeah!) was born.

“We wanted to think of a concept that Lincoln didn’t have,” Nguyen said. “At the time there were no food trucks so we thought we’d make a food truck!”

Nguyen and his family started with Vietnamese recipes passed down generation after generation and added their own twist.

“Korean fries, who does Korean fries? Asian burritos, who’s doing that,” Nguyen said.

Heoya introduced the Asian fusion recipes to Lincoln and they’ve been loving them for ten years.

“We’ve made it ten years and now I think we’ll be around for good,” he said.

They started with a food truck which spent a lot of time on UNL’s campus testing out new recipes on college students. Now, a decade later, they’re serving from a kitchen inside the U-Stop at 33rd and Superior.

It’s an accomplishment they never expected.

“I shed a tear,” Nguyen said. “You feel accomplished. You’ve created something built up slowly and surely and then once you get to that ten year point it’s just satisfying.”

Nyugen said it’s an accomplishment they couldn’t have done on their own. He said every day employees from local businesses flood the U-Stop as soon as they start serving at 11:00 a.m.

“We’re very blessed,” he said.

Nguyen said a lot has changed over the last year. Food trucks took hold in the city, with dozens opening up.

“We try and help them all out,” Nguyen said. “Share with them the highs and the lows.”

Then, the pandemic brought a challenge nobody expected, but Heoya actually saw more success.

“Lincoln really stepped up and helped local businesses,” Nguyen said.

Now there are plans to pass the business down to Nguyen’s son to possibly open a second location.

“There have been so many ups and downs and we’ve worked through it,” Nguyen said. “Now we’ve made it ten years, I think we’ll make it to another 20 or 30.

Heoya is open from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. every day but Sunday at the U-Stop at 33rd and Superior. You can also book the food truck for events.

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